The two males, who were later identified, claimed to not know Alex was deaf, according to his mother. She told the station that one of the students was suspended, and the other was being investigated.

Alex said he didn’t know either of the students, but would like to speak with them.

”I just want to talk to them; I don’t want to fight them,” he told the television station. “I want to talk it out. And talk to their parents about them so they can tell them they need to teach them the right thing to do.”

“It’s not fair that the bullies think they can continue with this behavior,” she said. “They need to be reminded that there are consequences to stealing and bullying.”

In a statement released to KMTV, Omaha Public Schools acknowledged the incident at Burke High School.

“We take these kind of situations very seriously,” the statement read. “Due to student privacy laws, we are unable to provide specific details regarding the situation, but we do want to assure you that we are working with all parties involved. The situation was an isolated incident. OPS strives to provide a safe learning environment for all students.”

Students and the community have rallied around Hernandez, starting a GoFundMe page to raise money to pay for new school supplies for the teen. The page reached its stated fundraising goal of $800 within four days.